Jamie-Lynn Sigler On Return To Acting In ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ & Saying “I Have MS” On Screen For First Time: “It’s A Moment I Never Thought Possible”

SPOILER ALERT: The story includes details about Episode of 2208 of ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy “Heavy on Me.” Jamie-Lynn Sigler in Grey’s Anatomy – “Heavy on Me”Disney/Anne Marie Fox In tonight’s episode of Grey’s Anatomy, Dr. Richard Webber ( James Pickens Jr. ) and his wife Catherine Cox ( Debbie Allen ) clash over the course of action following Richard’s prostate cancer diagnosis. Unhappy with his wait-and-see approach, Catherine flies in Dr. Laura Kaplan, played by guest star Jamie-Lynn Sigler , a top urologist who proposes a surgical intervention that comes with risks but could also cure him, at least for the foreseeable future. Richard initially bristles at the idea because the potential complications could impact his work as a surgeon and his personal life. But after he learns that Laura has multiple sclerosis and after hearing her speak about adapting to the condition and remaining at the top of her profession, he has a change of heart and by the end of the episode, he agrees to the surgery. Watch on Deadline In an interview with Deadline, Sigler revealed how the guest role, created for her, came about and why it was important to her that the character is not defined by their affliction and has a full life and a career. She spoke about her scene with Pickens Jr. in which Laura discloses her condition, revealing that this was her first time playing someone with MS on TV. Sigler shares how it was to be on the Grey’s Anatomy set in her return to television after a three-year break and her hopes to come back to the show and do more acting in general. The Sopranos alumna Sigler, who also spoke about staying in touch with her co-stars on the groundbreaking HBO series, was diagnosed with MS when she was 20 years old and hid her diagnosis for 15 years, mainly because she feared repercussions for her Hollywood career. She went public in 2016. Elsewhere in the episode, Jo (Camilla Luddington) is spiraling postpartum, Simone (Alexis Floyd) and Lucas (Niko Terho) are adjusting to being friendly exes as she starts dating Wes (Trevor Jackson), Bailey (Chandra Wilson) and Owen (Kevin McKidd) team up to deliver yet another revolutionary surgery at Grey Sloane by removing a complex tumor while Jules (Adelaide Kane) continues to pine for Dr. Winston Ndugu (Anthony Hill) who started seeing a nurse. DEADLINE: I know that there had been conversations for months before we announced your casting last month . When were you were first approached with the idea, and how did it evolve until you settled on the storyline? SIGLER : I was approached by the Grey’s team almost a year ago about coming on the show and playing a role with MS, and my only input was that I wanted to show someone in their power. I didn’t want to show somebody that was needing help per se, or in any medical need. I wanted to show somebody that was living with this diagnosis...

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